[Rearview] A Bug and BBQ Throw-Down

Departments - RearView

The Greater Chicago Pest Management Alliance (GCPMA) kicked it up a notch at its second annual family picnic with a barbeque cook-off featuring a chef of Hell’s Kitchen and Food Network fame and Harry Bryan, the Nisus Corporation Midwest sales manager known for his barbeque skills.

Held at White Pines Golf Club in Bensenville, Ill., on July 27, the competition was a tasty hit with 160 pest management professionals, manufacturer representatives and family members, despite the unseasonably cool weather.

The “mano-a-mano throw-down” was won by Chef Richard Mancini, executive chef at White Pines Golf Club, “by one point I might add,” said Bryan, who called Mancini a “class act.”

Mancini participated in Hell’s Kitchen season 12 and won a Food Network episode of Chef Wanted with Anne Burrell last year. The “unexpected” 2-foot trophy topped with smoker cooker, presented by Univar Account Executive Bill Dyra, provides some “bragging rights,” smiled Mancini. This was one of his first head-to-head cooking competitions featuring a specific food product.

Mancini, declared the overall champ, won the pork rib competition; Bryan took the beef brisket category.

Serving as judges in the blind taste test were Doug James, Chicago radio personality and actor; Ryan Arens, golf events manager at White Pines Golf Club; and Liam Cunnington, 11-year-old son of Zoecon Professional Products’ Loren Cunnington who won the honor by raffle along with $125.

Bryan and wife, April, drove his three-ton smoker to the Chicago suburb from Powell, Tenn., near Knoxville. He and members of the “pre-party party” started cooking Friday evening and stayed up 48 hours preparing 100 pounds of beef brisket, 85 pounds of pork, and numerous pans of beans and potato salad.

The crowd loved the spread: Bryan cooked enough food for 300 people, but it was “G-O-N-E, gone!”

Other entertainment included a live band, dancing and a dunk tank.

Bryan competes on the barbeque circuit and has towed his cooker to more than 25 states, cooking for pest management companies, distributor open houses, association meetings, even home builder groups. An 18-year Nisus veteran, his industry friends know he’ll “tow my smoker anywhere and everywhere.”

This is the second year Bryan has cooked for the Greater Chicago Pest Management Alliance, which has about 200 member companies.

He met Mancini earlier this year at the golf club while making picnic arrangements with Don Kaufman, GCPMA vice president and Orkin branch manager.

In a “ridiculously boastful” way, Bryan suggested they have a “barbeque throw down.” The rest is history.

Bryan is “grateful to be a part of a great association” and said the cook-off will have people talking for years. “Bugs and barbecue makes for a fun time,” he smiled. — Anne Nagro

[Tech Talk] Preventing Autumn Invaders

Columns - Technically Speaking

One of the many ways that insects survive cold weather is to hibernate in void spaces of structures. They migrate towards buildings in search of an ideal warm resting spot to spend the cold winter. Changes in daylight hours and cooler temperatures can trigger the insect’s indoor movements. Normally there is a single life stage, the adult stage, when the insects move indoors and they do not breed, feed or develop during the winter. They slow down their metabolism and wait for the arrival of spring. Examples of the most common insects employing this survival tactic include: multi-colored Asian lady beetles, cluster flies, boxelder bugs, brown marmorated stink bugs and the Western conifer seed bugs. These insects, by virtue of their numbers alone, can elevate beyond nuisance status, especially in sensitive environments like food-production plants, pharmaceutical plants and health-care facilities where insect contamination is a concern. Some can stain surfaces and create offensive odors in addition to being a nuisance and contamination threat. Here are “the invaders”:

Boxelder Bugs
Probably the most common of the fall invading insects, this black and red marked bug actually feeds on trees, including the boxelder and maple. It is ½-inch long as an adult, and mostly black in color with red lines marking the wings and the thorax or area behind the head.

Brown Marmorated Stink Bug
The brown marmorated stink bug is a relatively new invasive insect that has moved from its U.S. introduction point in eastern Pennsylvania westward, causing growing problems for pest management professionals. This is both an agricultural and structural pest. It can be identified by its mottled brown color and shield-like shape. Adults are about 5/8-inch in length and have lighter bands or stripes on the last segments of the antennae and around the exposed edges of the abdomen.

Cluster Fly
There are several flies that will overwinter in structures. Cluster flies and face flies are the most common and tend to cause the most concern since they often appear in groups or clusters. The adult cluster fly is slightly larger than a house fly. The wings are held overlapping each other over the abdomen unlike the house fly, which has wings that appear to be more of a triangular pattern when at rest. It has golden yellow hairs on the thorax or main middle section of the body. The immature stages are parasitic on earth worms and cause no structural harm.

Multi-Colored Asian Lady Beetle
These beetles get their name because they can vary in color and markings. The wing color can vary from tan to reddish orange and they can have a varied number of black spots on the wings. They are predaceous on soft-bodied plant pests like aphids and have a valuable role in reducing agricultural and horticultural pests. They achieve pest status as they migrate indoors in the late fall months. They are sometimes called the Halloween beetle because they often come into structures around that time on a sunny day after a frost.

Western Conifer Seed Bug
This bug is a plant pest of conifers where it feeds on sap in cones, seeds and needles. It is ¾-inch in length, reddish brown in color with a faint white zig zag pattern that runs across the mid-section of the wings. It belongs to the leaf-footed bug family, so named because of the flattened leaf-like section on the hind leg. This fall invader is found in the Northern states only.

First Line of Defense (3 Ss) . The first line of defense are the 3 Ss (sealing, sweeps and screens). Ideal temperatures for their overwintering locations are in the 40-50°F range, typically found in the exterior wall voids or attic spaces of buildings. Denying insects access to these ideal harborage sites is the first line of defense in control. The use of sealants, door sweeps and screens are the primary exclusion tools in preventing entry. The size of entry hole and degree to which sealing is needed will depend on the insect. The multicolored Asian lady beetle will fit through openings 1/8-inch in size or larger. The sealing of all cracks in this width and use of normal window mesh screening will exclude most of the fall invaders. Door brushes and seals also should be in place. All sealing efforts must be made prior to the insect’s indoor migration, so those measures are typically conducted in the summer months.

All of the invaders tend to migrate towards the sunnier sides of the structure, which warrants special attention to sealing in south, west and east exposures. Several of the invaders will orient towards contrasting colors on walls (e.g., where a light colored building meets a dark frame). They also may follow structural lines such as foundation/siding junctures. All of these tips can be used to optimize sealing efforts. The table below shows the estimated time frames for fall-invading insects to move into and out of structures. It can be used to help plan proper sealing times. Seal after they leave the building and before re-entry in the fall or late summer.

Insecticidal Control. Perimeter treatments with insecticides can be used to supplement exclusion efforts. The applications should be made to areas where the insects are resting and entering the building. New changes in pyrethroid insecticide (i.e., deltamethrin, cypermethrin, cyfluthrin and lambda-cyhalothrin) labels may limit the ability to treat all areas with these products. More directed treatment may be required under the new labels. Pest management professionals may need special lifts or ladders to reach affected areas on structures with impervious surfaces that fall directly underneath the target surface. If insecticidal treatments are performed, they should be scheduled at the time right before the insects are starting to enter the structure for optimal effectiveness. Insecticide treatments after they have entered the structure are of minimal help.

Physical Removal. If the window for exclusion and preventive pesticide treatment was not met and the insects made their way unrestricted, insect light traps may be helpful in attracting and eliminating some of the insects that are not confined in ceiling or wall void spaces. Occasionally, a number of the invading insects will wind up in the occupied spaces of the building based on their point of entry, or they may emerge in winter during a temporary “January thaw” situation, believing that it is spring time. Smaller portable, battery-operated light traps can be useful in small areas for attracting insects and may offer some relief.

Commercially available exterior pheromone traps have been used successfully in reducing brown marmorated stink bugs on the exterior. Care should be used in ensuring they are not placed too close to the structure, which might encourage interior migration.

In addition to light traps, insects also can physically be removed through the use of vacuums. If vacuums are used, the contents should be discarded right after vacuuming has been completed. Some of the invaders like stink bugs can cause objectionable odors if left inside the vacuum.

Pat Hottel, a member of the Copesan Technical Committee, has almost 40 years of experience in the pest management industry. She’s been with McCloud Services in Hoffman Estates, Ill., since 1980 and serves as technical director. Hottel holds a bachelor’s degree in entomology from the University of Georgia and is a BCE.

Copesan is an alliance of pest management companies with locations throughout North America. To learn more, visit www.copesan.com.

Additional Bat Coverage

Online Extras - PCT News

A listing of bat-related websites and a directory of bat experts and resources.

Included in this month’s issue is a series of bat articles (page 32) from PCT as well as information from Batcon.org, the website for Bat Conservation International. The main article includes observations from two experts – Dr. Brock Fenton of the University of Western Ontario and Bat Conservation International Outreach Associate Dianne Odegard. Below is a listing of bat-related websites and a directory of bat experts and resources.

[Annual Wildlife Control Issue] A Bat Habit

Features - Annual Wildlife Control Issue

Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in the Pest Control Canada e-newsletter, sponsored by Univar Environmental Sciences. To receive this e-newsletter, email jdorsch@giemedia.com with the subject line “subscribe Canada.”

The United States has 47 species of bats. Three commonly roost in structures. Three experts — Dr. Brock Fenton, University of Western Ontario, Bat Conservation International Outreach Associate Dianne Odegard and Ann Froschauer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service — offered a look at this fascinating animal:

Common Tenants. Bats roosting in attics or eaves often are the little brown myotis, big brown bat and Mexican free-tailed bat, said Odegard. Most bats weigh between 4 and 20 grams.

Long Lifespan. Bats usually bear one pup a year, though big brown bats have twins. Mating occurs in August–September. Females store sperm through the winter and get pregnant in April. Young are independent by August. A bat found roosting on the outside of a building around this time is likely a lost young. Adult bats live a long time: The oldest little brown myotis on record is 34 years in the wild. In Europe, it is 45 years.

Hibernation Hideaways. When weather turns cold, some bat species migrate south or to different habitats within their summer range, said Odegard. The little brown myotis stays local and hibernates in abandoned mines and caves. The big brown bat may overwinter in the walls of structures where the temperature stays just above freezing. Mexican free-tailed bats enter a state of torpor when insects become unavailable in cold weather. While hibernating bats go the entire winter without food, bats in torpor need food and drink after 10 to 14 days, Odegard explained.

Hot Property. In the spring, females leave hibernation sites to find hot places, such as attics or eaves, to raise their pups, said Fenton. Hot babies grow faster that cold babies, and hot females produce more milk than cold females. Bats congregate in these spots. The biggest colony Fenton saw was 3,000 little brown bats in an old farmhouse north of Kingston, Ontario. Don’t perform exclusion while females have dependent young. Having females outside while dependent young inside starve to death “is not a good combination,” said Fenton.

Insect Eaters. All bats eat insects and the odd spider. They have a voracious appetite and high metabolic rate: A typical male eats half his body weight in insects every summer night. A lactating female eats 120 percent of her body weight.

Rabies Warning. Bats are susceptible to rabies, which can be transmitted to humans by bite. Do not handle bats unless you’re specially trained and have had your rabies shots.

New Endangered Species? Nearly 7 million bats in North America have died from white-nose syndrome, a rapidly spreading fungal disease found in 19 states and 4 Canadian provinces.

In response, the federal government is assessing all bats threatened by the disease and is considering listing the northern long-eared bat, eastern small-footed myotis and little brown myotis as endangered species, said Ann Froschauer, national White-Nose Syndrome communications leader for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Rulings on the Northern long-eared bat and Eastern small-footed myotis are expected in 2013, she said. A decision on the little brown myotis may take longer given its widespread range across the U.S.

Massachusetts and Vermont already have listed threatened bats as endangered. Pennsylvania is considering the move, and more states may follow.

In Canada, the little brown myotis, northern long eared bat, and tri-colored bat are being considered for federal endangered status. A similar request was made in the province of Ontario.

Bats in the Belfry? It’s likely one of these three species:

1) Little brown myotis (Myotis lucifugus) This bat has long, glossy fur colored pale tan to dark brown. It’s found in wooded areas throughout Canada and the northern United States. In summer, females form nursery colonies in buildings, tree hollows, rock crevices and under bridges. In winter, they hibernate in caves and mines.

2) Big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus)
Relatively large, this bat has a broad nose and fur colored light rust to dark brown. It lives throughout Canada and the U.S., except for central Texas and extreme southern Florida. Females form nursery colonies in buildings or hollow trees; males live alone or in small bachelor colonies. They hibernate singly or in groups up to 100 in caves, buildings and abandoned mines.

3) Mexican free-tailed bat (Tadarida brasiliensis)
This medium size bat has dark brown to gray fur. The largest U.S. populations live in the West, with the densest concentrations found in Texas. Maternity colonies in limestone caves, abandoned mines, under bridges, and in buildings can number in the hundreds of thousands to millions. Researchers estimate 100 million Mexican free-tailed bats in Central Texas eat 1,000 tons of agricultural pests each night.

If a species like little brown myotis is deemed at risk, bat exclusion will become “more complicated,” said Fenton. A special permit may be required to work with these species, said Froschauer.

Endangered species cannot be denied critical habitat, which includes where females have their young, reminded Fenton. Still, exclusion likely can be done in a way that won’t “put you outside the law,” like performing it from November to March when the little brown myotis is hibernating underground, he explained. Or, home or business owners could apply for an exemption.

“We would never put somebody’s health and wellbeing at risk if they had bats in their home,” said Froschauer.

Stay tuned.

Anne Nagro is a PCT contributing writer. Dr. BrockFenton of the University of Western Ontario is one of Canada’s leading experts on the behavior and ecology of bats. Founded in 1982, Bat Conservation International is devoted to conservation, education and research initiatives involving bats and the ecosystems they serve.

Bat Exclusion: Expertise Required

Bat exclusion is a big ticket, complex service. Here are tips for success.

By Anne Nagro

Bats are beneficial, threatened and legally protected. They’re small – weighing a mere .16 to .70 ounces – and easily find their way into structures through 1/2- to 1/4-inch gaps. They’re also loyal. Randy Hobbs, VP of Bedford, Nova Scotia-based Braemer Services, recalled a client’s century-old house where bats had been returning to roost for 60 years. “They had thousands of bats. They had droppings in the attic between four-and-a-half and five feet deep.”

The only way to prevent bats from roosting in structures is exclusion, which is not a simple process. To help you succeed, experts shared these tips:

Assess the colony. Watch bats leave the structure in the evening to determine how many there are and key entry/exit points. If possible, identify the species.

Install artificial roosts. Before exclusion work begins, put up bat houses to give bats a new place to roost, said Dianne Odegard, outreach associate at Bat Conservation International. This will give displaced bats shelter, protect them from predators and possibly prevent them from settling in neighbors’ attics. Exclusion at a Texas sports stadium caused thousands of Mexican free-tailed bats to seek shelter at nearby homes. Bat houses must be properly constructed and sited.

Exclude at the right time. Hobbs waits until bats have migrated in fall or before they return in spring to perform exclusion work. Don’t exclude them while females have dependent young or the pups may starve to death inside, explained Dr. Brock Fenton of the University of Western Ontario. Young are independent by late August, but the roosting site should be empty by late fall. Bats hibernating in a structure should not be excluded until spring when food and temperatures are favorable. Don’t go into the colony, catch or handle bats unless you’re specially trained and have had rabies shots.

Find all holes. Bats don’t have the teeth or claws to make their own holes; they use existing openings to get inside. Finding these access points is a challenge on older structures, where warping wood and wear and tear can cause many gaps. Look for holes where cable and pipe enter a building and where the roof joins the walls. Other areas include: chimney, soffits, loose shingles/tiles, loose flashing and areas where siding forms corners or meets doors or windows. In stadiums and parking garages, bats may roost in expansion joints between concrete beams. Look for black or brown stains caused by bats’ body oils or droppings around cracks and crevices.

Seal gaps. While bats roost during the day, seal the entire structure using screen and caulk except for those holes where bats freely come and go. If bats are getting into the living space, work with the homeowner to identify and seal interior gaps and install attic and basement door guards.

Install one-way valves. Where bats come and go freely, install one-way valves to ensure they get out but not back in. Common devices are made from tubes, plastic sheeting and polypropylene netting. See Bat Conservation International’s instructions on building and installing these devices (see www.batcon.org/pdfs/education/fof_ug.pdf). Traps and relocation are not approved exclusion techniques, except when capturing a single bat for species identification or removing a bat from an indoor living or work space.

Monitor and remove. Visit the structure on a night without rain to determine if bats are freely leaving the one-way doors and that you haven’t missed any entry points, said Hobbs. He learned this the hard way: At the century-old house job, returning bats tried to gain entry through the chimney, which didn’t lead to the attic but to the living room. “We spent a few days chasing thousands of bats out from inside the home.” Leave the valves in place for 5 to 7 days. Once you’re comfortable all bats have gotten out, remove these devices and seal the holes.

7 Million Bats (and counting) Succumb to White-Nose Syndrome

Nearly 7 million bats have died from White- Nose Syndrome in North America, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. First documented in New York in 2006, the fast-spreading disease has been found in 19 states and 4 provinces.

Caused by the fungus Geomyces destructans, the disease attacks hibernating bats. Most noticeable is the white mold-like growth on bats’ faces and wings, but infected bats also exhibit unusual behavior, like flying outside during the day and clustering near the entrances of caves and mines when they should be hibernating. Mortality rates are approaching 100 percent at some caves.

The little brown myotis, once the most common bat in the northeastern United States, has taken “a terrible hit” with more lost than any other species, said Bat Conservation International Outreach Associate Dianne Odegard. “It’s frightening to think that a plentiful, common species can actually be at the point of regional extinction in a period of five or six years.”

Scientists expect the disease to continue to spread, said Ann Froschauer, national White-Nose Syndrome communications leader for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The fungus likely was transported accidently by humans on gear or shoes from a cave in Europe.

Clean up. In addition to exclusion, Braemar Services cleans up droppings, removes contaminated insulation and installs new insulation. Proper safety gear, including a respirator, is necessary.

Set expectations. Missing a key entry point is a very real possibility. When the bats find their way back in, customers can get grumpy. Take time to set expectations for service, follow up and the time frame for completing the job.

Note: Before undertaking bat exclusion, make sure you have the proper training and licenses.

Visit “online extras” on the PCT Online home-page for a listing of bat-related websites and a list of bat experts and resources.

Promising New Detection and Control Methods

Supplement - Bed Bug Supplement

A promising approach to managing the current bed bug pandemic is to prevent bed bug introductions from becoming full-blown infestations with multiple life stages.

It’s clear that bed bugs have become a widespread problem in the United States once again, with reported incidences in all 50 states. The 2013 Bugs Without Borders Survey conducted by the National Pest Management Association (NPMA) and the University of Kentucky, and released in April of this year, found that bed bug infestations in the United States continue at high rates. In addition, bed bugs are still the most difficult pest to treat, according to 76 percent of survey respondents, more so than cockroaches, ants and termites.

Bed bugs are easily transported from place to place unknowingly by people, luggage, purses and used furniture. Recent research shows they also move between apartments and between homes in multi-family dwellings. Bed bugs are very cryptic, so people often don’t realize they have them until the infestation becomes very large, and by then, difficult to control.

According to Dr. Phil Koehler, professor of structural pest control and urban entomology at the University of Florida, a promising approach to managing the current bed bug pandemic is to prevent bed bug introductions from becoming full-blown infestations with multiple life stages.

The main method for preventing introductions from becoming infestations is to engage customers in a bed bug monitoring program to prevent introductions from getting out of hand. Yet, according to A Strategic Analysis of the U.S. Professional Turf and Ornamental Pesticide Market — The 2012 Season, only about one-third of pest management companies servicing accounts for bed bugs report employing monitoring devices as part of their service.

At NPMA PestWorld 2012, the National Pest Management Association’s annual conference and exposition, Koehler described several methods for detecting bed bugs and shared some ongoing research efforts aimed at finding more effective methods to treat them.

ENHANCED VISUAL INSPECTION. PestWest offers the Contrasting Specimen Inspection Kit (CSI), an enhanced visual inspection kit that includes specialty orange glasses and a 455 nm range blue-light lamp that are commonly used in the forensics industry to detect blood serum, which fluoresces. The blue-emitting light source is used to identify latent signs and other physical infestation evidence, while the orange glasses block the blue light so the examiner can see the fluorescence of the eggs and blood serum.

“Using this kit, the inspectors must know what they are looking for, but unfortunately a video camera does not capture much fluorescence, so there’s not a video for training purposes,” Koehler says. “As such, it takes a great deal of training to know what you are looking for in order to use these tools effectively.”

Recently introduced to the market, a Bed Bug Fecal Spot Detection Kit, from Bed Bug Blue, includes cotton swabs as well as developer tape and fluid. The inspector wipes the swab over the suspected fecal spot, and then applies it to the developer tape. After adding developer fluid, the spot on the tape will turn blue, indicating it is a fecal spot up to two years old.

According to Koehler, while the kit can confirm whether it is a bed bug fecal spot or not, it does not differentiate between active or old infestations.

DNA DETECTION. Research Associates Laboratory, and several other labs, offer an easy and effective method to detect bed bugs using their DNA. It is available to consumers as well as the pest control industry, so customers may have already sent in a sample for analysis prior to calling for an inspection. One simply swabs areas where bed bugs typically hide, completes an analysis request form and sends it in to the lab. Results are returned in about 24 hours and are 99 percent accurate.

Bed bug DNA detection can help determine where bed bugs have been and differentiate bed bugs from other insects and mites. However, it cannot help determine if treatment has been successful because their DNA remains active for more than one year.

BED BUG DOGS. Koehler says bed bug detection dogs make it much easier to identify bed bugs, provided that the dog has been trained and handled properly. Well trained and properly handled dogs can detect even small infestations and can distinguish between active infestations (live bugs and viable eggs) and evidence of past infestations such as dead bugs, feces and cast skins.

“At the University of Florida, we’ve tested dogs that have a defined training and handling regimen,” Koehler says. “And recent testing on the accuracy of bed bug sniffing dogs at the university shows that the dogs have a 98 percent accuracy rate and can differentiate between live bugs and dead bugs or past infestations.”

There are many canine schools that train dogs to detect bed bugs, but Koehler encourages companies to do a thorough investigation to ensure the dogs have been trained well and handled properly. NPMA has taken the lead to develop Best Management Practices for Bed Bugs, which include standards for canine bed bug detection team certification. NPMA’s Canine Detection Division also provides guidelines for selecting a trainer for an insect detection canine for pest management firms considering purchasing a canine for insect detection.

There are also several different forms of artificial bed bug sniffers on the market, such as the BBD-100 from TDS, although false alerts are a problem according to Koehler. \

“The gas has to be contained in order for it to work properly. If there’s a situation where there is a lot of air flow, it won’t be able to detect the bed bugs, even if there are hundreds of them next to the device,” Koehler says.
Another is called the Electronic Dog Nose Bed Bug Detective.

“I’ve always found it interesting that the Bed Bug Detective won the Popular Sciences 2011 Invention Award, but it has not been proven to work and the prototypes didn’t work very well,” says Koehler.

CARBON DIOXIDE FLUSH. Koehler also tested a carbon dioxide flush using a CO2 cartridge and a bicycle tire inflation regulator. Starved bed bugs responded immediately to the CO2 and they ran from harborages to the top of the bed. They introduced 100 bed bugs, gave them time to hide, and then turned on one of the cartridges. First, they tried to flush them out by spraying the CO2 into the cracks and crevices, but there was no response.

“We thought maybe the bed bugs didn’t want to come out for a host that is moving. The next time we set it down so it was a stationary CO2 source and they responded,” Koehler explains. “However, fed bed bugs won’t respond to a CO2 flush so it has its limitations. If someone had been sleeping in that bed, the bugs wouldn’t have responded the way they did.”

LEAVE-BEHIND DETECTORS. Of the leave-behind bed bug detectors, dual-action detectors are an effective means to trap the insects using the bed bug behavior theory that there are two types of bed bugs: host seeking and harborage seeking. Host-seeking bed bugs are attracted to CO2, kairomones, heat and color.

After feeding on the host, bed bugs then seek harborage using pheromones and their attraction to color, crack size and surface texture. Dual-action detectors utilize both “attraction to host” and “attraction to harborage” cues.

FMC manufactures the Verifi bed bug detector, a dual-action detector. The Verifi bed bug detector provides up to 90 days of active detection, at which point its attractants can be replaced and detection can continue. The Verifi bed bug detector creates a new ongoing bed bug service offering for pest management companies, while generating a recurring revenue stream. The detector is small, unobtrusive and easily installed on walls or behind furniture.
By continuing to detect bed bugs for up to 90 days, Verifi detects that an infestation is present, confirms that treatment was successful and provides ongoing detection to ensure that bed bugs are gone or to identify any new bed bugs that are introduced.

“During our research trials, the Verifi unit detected bed bugs in rooms where they were not obvious with a visual inspection,” Koehler says. “Verifi is a way for PMPs to identify infestations and increase their companies’ revenues by making treatments for infestations that would normally be overlooked. PMPs can also get paid for the monitoring itself, as opposed to just coming in and correcting a problem when it’s out of control.”

Preliminary data show that Verifi will activate bed bugs up to 5 feet away, but Koehler and his team are in the process of verifying that data. In addition, NPMA has given him a grant to study the activity of bed bugs over time and track individual bed bugs to see how much they move to help determine how many monitoring devices to place per room.

PROMISING NEW METHODS. Non-chemical treatments include using heat (e.g., a clothes drier or a heat chamber), a vacuum, mattress encasements and traps. An attractive non-chemical treatment is what Koehler calls the “Bed Bug Heat Box.” UF Associate Research Scientist, Roberto Pereira designed the process to work like a convection oven.

“He put all the infested furniture in the center of the room, and then created an oven around it using insulation boards. Inside the box, he placed two heaters and two fans so that the air is heated and circulated within the sealed box,” Koehler said. “It’s a very simple system to control bed bugs. It doesn’t require any use of pesticides, and the equipment that is used is fairly inexpensive.”

The goal was to get the temperature up to at least 120°F for at least one minute. All of the bed bugs died, even those under the mattress. The treatment also resulted in media coverage for the university. (Visit http://news.ufl.edu/2010/08/02/bed-bug-remedy/ to watch a video demonstration.)

Chemical treatments include sprays, dusts, insecticide vapors and fumigation, where appropriate. Dichlorvos (the active ingredient in Nuvan Prostrips) is still registered for bed bug control, but most treatments require an empty room or container, a minimum of seven days of treatment and at least two hours of aeration time.

“We decided to combine that process with heat in an effort to accelerate dichlorvos vaporization and shorten the time required to kill bed bugs and the eggs,” Koehler says.

They used vacant dorm rooms and placed a fan behind a heater to blow hot air on Nuvan Prostrips hanging from a stand. Using this procedure, the dichlorvos vaporized 60 times faster and bed bugs and eggs were killed more quickly — in one day vs. seven days.

“There are reasons why this worked well, but also some limitations,” says Koehler. “Heating strips is not prohibited on the label, but it’s not on the label as a treatment, per se. They are working on getting EPA-approved directions on the label, in conjunction with AMVAC.”

Currently, Koehler and Pereira are conducting research to determine use rates, equipment needed for heating and vapor circulation, timing for the most effective control and ventilation procedures to clear dichlorvos residues.
“Remember, these are only experiments. This research will be used to develop the new label directions for Nuvan plus heat treatments,” Koehler says. “Until a new label is developed, pest control operators should carefully follow the current label directions.”

The author is a contributing writer for PCT and can be contacted at cbrazell@giemedia.com.